Adventure by Train: Scenery, Sunflowers, and a Reservoir

Last Saturday we went on a fun train trip adventure up north. In December, the Thai Railway offers a special day-trip train for 270 baht ($9) for an adult and 150 ($5) for a child. I thought it would be a fun way to get out of the city and see some of the countryside. Not having a car makes it difficult for us to go places and get back within a day, so this was a perfect opportunity.

Since the train left at 6:40 am and we were supposed to be there early, we woke up before it was light. I packed the diaper bag, lunch, and boiled eggs for breakfast the night before, so we could just get up, get dressed, and head out. Since public transportation doesn't run regularly before 6 o'clock, we hired a taxi driver that we know to take us; we did not want to miss the train! There wasn't much traffic on the roads yet, so the it was a pleasant trip to the Hua Lomphong Train Station. We arrived in plenty of time, so we found a place to sit and eat our breakfast. Before long, it was time to board the train. Car 5 was near the front, so we practiced counting backwards from 15. Hollis was thoroughly confused, but Meriel did well. We sat in the first available seats where 49/50 where written on the wall in barely visible orange scrawls while Philip went to see if he could decipher 11/12, 13/14, 15. He managed to find our correct seats, so we relocated and waited for the ride to begin.

We were the only farang (white people) on our car, so Simeon quickly won the hearts of all around us by toddling around and smiling at everyone. The people in the seats across the aisle passed out guava and dried fish to the girls. When the train started, the girls were excited to wear long sleeve shirts, since it was a cool morning and a breeze came through the open windows. It seemed to take a long time before the train finally got out of Bangkok. The trained passed by numerous shacks nearly touching the track, where children played in the gravel of the railroad and we smelled the smoke of many breakfasts cooking. We marveled at the huge cement and steel columns being erected to continue the skytrain line to the north part of the city, scheduled to open in five years. The number of cement structures slowly diminished, until it seem the city was finally behind us.

Gradually I noticed the sky was a deeper, clearer shade of blue and green fields dotted with stilted houses spread out on either side of the track. We saw egrets, cranes, swallows, and numerous birds we could not name. Thai cows and even one donkey grazed lazily, not even looking up as we passed. Tall, silvery feathered cattails waved in the sunlight; swampy marshes opened up into dark pools. I thought, this is a Thailand I could learn to love in a way I can never be at home in the city. Being out in the country gave me hope for our future, our dream to live and serve in rural Thailand. The time is not now, and God has helped me learn to be content in the city, but one day when He leads us out, I will be ready.

People dozed as the rocking of the train lulled them to sleep. Philip tried to sleep, but Meriel and Hollis both wanted to rest in his lap and that made it too difficult to get comfortable. Just north Saraburi, a man with a megaphone walked through the train, announcing our first stop where we would have 40 minutes to explore the sunflower fields. Everyone was wide awake, grabbing cameras and hats. The girls were eagerly looking out the window for their first glimpse. Then we saw it, a waving field of sunflowers, all lifting their faces toward the train. Now Thai variety sunflowers are not quite as tall as those seen in the United States (somehow everything is bigger in the U.S.), but they are still taller than Eris and quite impressive to small children.

Once we entered the field, we let the kids wander through the tall stalks. Simeon found the walking rough and was constantly stopped by people wanting their picture taken with him, so he didn't make it very far. Eris had her camera and went farthest afield, pausing to take pictures as she fancied. She had her fair share of photos taken of her as well. Meriel was worried about not being able to find her way out, so stayed close to Daddy or Mommy. Hollis ran off a little too far sometimes but was easy to spot by the crowd of people around her. If the object of a photo was not a sunflower, it was likely it was one of our children. I walked through the field to an area with flowers that were slightly taller than I; I would have liked to go deeper in those flowers but had to turn around to keep track of my sweet children.

Eris and I looked at the flower heads and noted the black spots that would turn into seeds. We saw some little caterpillars on the biggest heads and a tiny ladybug with no spots. We were not quite finished exploring when the train blew its whistle to warn us to re-board. We were on to our next location of interest. Even though it was only about 10:30, we were really hungry so we got out our treat of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. We finished off most of the cucumber and carrot sticks and were licking potato chip crumbs off our fingers when we started across the long train bridge over the Pasak Jolasid Reservoir. The reservoir was so big that Eris decided it to call it the "Thai Lake Eerie." I think there must be strict regulations regarding its use, because I did not see a single boat on the water. I did spot one man walking through the edge of the water tending to a traditional fishing trap of net wrapped around poles stuck in the mud. The train stopped on the bridge, and we were able to get off. We diligently watched the children while enjoying the breeze and views.

Back on the train, we finished crossing the bridge then waited in the next station for the engine to move to the other side to take us back across the reservoir. The final stop of the trip was 90 minutes at the Pasak Jolasid Dam. The girls climbed on the boulders at the edge of the water, had a rock throwing contest, and watched huge catfish feed on chunks of bread. We caught a little tram for a trip over the dam, pointing out the difference in water level on either side and the hydroelectric works. Arriving back, we had just enough time for the kids to run off some energy and for some ice cream cones before heading back to the station.

The trip home was relaxing. Simeon slept, Philip rested, the girls looked quietly out the window. I once again enjoyed the scenery, noticing the mountains Khao Yai National Park in the distance along with some hills and smaller rock formations nearby. We alit at Bang Sue station, which is nearer our home and took the subway to our Lat Phrao station. We finished the day with a meal at restaurant we'd not tried before and made it home to get some exhausted, but happy, children in bed.